Women
are the fastest growing population within the vast U.S. prison
complex - especially women of color. Women often play minor roles
in drug conspiracies, yet serve longer prison sentences than
their male partners.

Many women are raised in poverty and have struggled with addiction.
After years in prison, held far from home and loved ones, they
suffer greatly from prison policies designed to corrupt, weaken
and eventually destroy family ties.

The stories you will discover on The Wall are presented to
emphasize the humanity of everyone you find here. These people
could be your neighbor, your friend's friend, or someone you
heard about on the nightly news. Reading The Wall is a journey
beyond statistics and into the lives of the victims of the failed
drug war.

Women are the fastest growing and least violent segment of
prison and jail populations. 85% of female jail inmates are behind
bars for nonviolent offenses.

From 1986 (the year mandatory sentencing was enacted) to 1996,
the number of women sentenced to federal prison for drug crimes
increased from 2,400 to 24,000 and has been the main element
in the overall increase in the imprisonment of women.

The rate of imprisonment for African-American women is at
least eight times the rate of imprisonment of white women; the
rate of imprisonment of Hispanic women is nearly four times the
rate of imprisonment of white women.